Argonaute 3 (AGO3) promotes malignancy potential of cervical cancer via regulation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway.

Abstract

We aimed to investigate the biological roles of Argonaute 3 (AGO3) in cervical cancer. RNA profiles containing 306 cervical cancer tissues and 13 normal samples revealed that AGO3 was significantly up-regulated in cervical cancer, and the expression of AGO3 was negatively associated with the outcome of cervical cancer patients. Cell proliferation and transwell assays showed that the depletion of AGO3 markedly inhibited cervical cancer cell growth and mobility. Importantly, we detected that knockdown of AGO3 exerted suppressive effect on cellular behaviors via inactivating Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway. Collectively, we conclude that AGO3 is a novel tumor promoter in cervical cancer and has a potential to be a drug target and prognostic predictor of cervical cancer patients.